GUANGZHOU: Tourism authorities in South China's Guangdong province expect to strengthen cooperation with overseas partners through an upcoming tourism festival.
A high-profile forum on cooperation with foreign sister provinces and states will be staged during the 2009 Guangdong International Tourism and Culture Festival held from November 13 to 19.
Guests invited include tourism ministers from Malaysia and South Africa along with governors of sister provinces and states, said Yang Rongsen, director of the provincial tourism administration.
"We will explore the ways out of the financial crisis, new trends and deeper cooperation with sister provinces and states," Yang said at a press conference on Sept 1.
"Regional cooperation is necessary in Guangdong's efforts to strengthen its tourism sector."
A photo show with the participation of overseas Chinese titled "Old Photos, New Guangdong" will be held during the festival.
With Guangdong the origin of more than 30 million overseas Chinese, the tourism sector hopes to encourage them tour their ancestral homeland, Yang said.
The tourism authorities intend to name 2010 the "Year of Travel by Overseas Chinese" as the country celebrates the 60th anniversary of new China's founding this year and Guangzhou's hosts the Asian Games next year.
Tourism routes and products for overseas Chinese are under design, while local and some overseas airlines are being solicited to offer special fares.
Tourism authorities will also work for close ties with the tourism sector in Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions, Yang said.
Representatives from more than 300 organizations in Hong Kong and Macao participated the Guangdong festival last year.
This year's festival will feature a seminar on investment in tourism across the Taiwan Straits, said Liu Xiaojie, deputy secretary-general of the provincial government.
Held concurrently with the Pan-Pearl River Delta Tourism Promotion Convention, the festival is jointly organized by the National Tourism Administration and the Guangdong provincial government.
More than 170 events will be held across the province after an opening ceremony at the stadium in Guangzhou University Town. The closing event will be held at Chimelong Paradise, a large theme park in Guangzhou.
Major activities include a parade, a Cantonese cuisine summit, a contest to select the Guangdong tourism image ambassador and a contest for Guangdong's top tour guides.
For the first time, all 21 cities in Guangdong will stage events during the festival.
Guangzhou, for example, will highlight a boat flotilla on the Pearl River, Cantonese opera shows, an international food festival, the presentation of Golden Bell Awards for music in China and a fashion show, among other activities.
Shenzhen will host the F1 Powerboat World Championship, a World Cup golf championship and grand parties at its famed theme parks.
Foshan will present its martial arts culture, Qingyuan will offer its hot springs and facilities and Shaoguan will feature Danxia Mountain, which has been submitted as a World Natural Heritage site.
Heyuan and Meizhou, home of Hakka people, will display Hakka culture, buildings, food and a trade fair.
Jiangmen will hold an overseas Chinese hometown tour festival and Chaozhou will host the east Guangdong overseas Chinese expo.
Guangdong's tourism industry earned $5.05 billion from foreign visitors in the first half of this year, up 1 percent over the same period of 2008, according to the provincial tourism administration.
Domestic travel revenues grew by 10 percent to 105.6 billion yuan during the period.
The province continued to rank first in the country in the number of inbound travelers staying at least one night, which totaled 11.23 million and decreased slightly from the first six months of last year.
For all of 2008, it hosted 25.68 million inbound travelers staying at least one night, a 10.2 percent increase from 2007.
Guangdong generated $9.175 billion in foreign exchange last year, up 2.6 percent from 2007, while domestic travel income hit 200.36 billion yuan, a 11.9 percent increase.
Provincial authorities have also been working on a Guangdong National Travel and Recreation Program to further stimulate the tourism industry.
(China Daily 09/04/2009 page5)
